Education needs to be nimble

There is an old saying that changes in education are evolutionary not revolutionary.
There is a great deal of truth to this saying. In today’s world we in education must change this

We must become nimble.

Nimble is defined as quick and light in movement; moving with ease; agile and active.

Do not confuse being nimble with being reactionary or rash. Being nimble means we must have the ability to move quickly, efficiently and effectively to meet the challenges that face education.

As I reflect on our budget development process, I realize how difficult it is for a school district to be nimble. We are planning our spending and programs for next year based on old knowledge, old data and old assumptions. As all of you know, technology that is purchased today is out of date quickly, sometimes even before we purchase it. New best practices in the classroom emerge on a daily basis. It would take a crystal ball to know exactly what new and improved technology and knowledge will be available to us come September, yet we formulate schedules and budgets that reflect what we have done in the past.


Schools face the specter of being under-funded and over-regulated in these very hard times. This adds to our plodding nature and makes becoming nimble seem nearly impossible. The call for greater and greater accountability stifles our desire to take risks of any kind.

But we can’t let these factors become excuses.

To overcome these challenges and become nimble we must build flexibility and calculated risk taking into our budgets, schedules, lesson plans and policies. We must put in place processes to review our actions quickly and, based on current data, take corrective action in a moments notice. We must be quick and light in movement, agile and active.

Throughout the spring our district will be working to align and update our curriculum to ensure rigor and relevance. During this process we will be able to build in opportunities for risk taking, language that allows for the flexibility and emphasis on research and innovation in the class room.

It is steps like these that will put us closer to one of my main goals - helping Watervliet become a nimble school district.